Tag: Celtic history

When the topic of ancient Irish jewelry comes up, people tend to think of the Tara brooch, but brooches and cloak pins aren’t the only ornaments the ancient peoples of Ireland wore. Our fashion-conscious ancestors apparently wore earrings too. The National Museum of Ireland owns earrings dating back to 800 – 700 BC – centuries […]

Halloween had it’s beginnings as an ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain. This occurred at the end of the harvest and it was believed that the dead would come back to life causing harm to crops and possibly bringing illness to the local people. Commonly bonfires would be created which would attract insects and that would […]

A pirate is always a great Halloween costume, and women who are looking for a costume idea that combines the glamour of a princess with the fun of a pirate should consider Grace O’Malley, Ireland’s legendary pirate queen. Grace O’Malley, also known as Gráinne Ní Mháille and Granuaile, was both fierce and regal, a woman […]

Knots don’t always get much respect. Think about how we use the word. Don’t get your knickers in a knot. My stomach’s in knots. Not much good about knots in those phrases. But when you are talking about jewelry and design, Ireland wrote the book on knots, and the whole world wants to read it… […]

The more astute may have noticed that both the Irish government and a particularly popular purveyor of a brand of stout associated with this island both use a harp as a symbol. It isn’t the same harp, mind you, due to copyright laws, but these aren’t the only examples of the harp as a symbol […]

Celtic Symbols are inspired by designs that are hundreds of years old, such as those found in ancient Celtic Manuscripts including the 9th Century Masterpiece of Irish Art History, “The Book of Kells”. […]